AMINO ACIDS 101

What are Amino Acids?

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. Amino acids are compounds composed of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen that your body needs to perform most cellular functions.

How Many Amino Acids Are There?

There are over 500 amino acids in nature but the human genetic code only directly codes for 20. These 20 amino acids are needed for vital processes like the building of muscles, the functionality of organs, and the synthesis of hormones and neurotransmitters. 

The Three Groups of Amino Acids You Should Know:

Amino acids are often categorized into groups; essential, non-essential and conditionally-essential.

Essential: means that these amino acids must come from your diet. We’ll also refer to these as “food source amino acids”.

Non-essential: means that your body can create these amino acids, and it is “not essential” to get them from your diet.

Conditionally essential: means that these are the amino acids that are non-essential, except in times of stress or illness.

 For example, during illness or stress; non-essential amino acids (the ones your body creates naturally) become conditionally essential and must be obtained from the diet or supplementation.   

The Amino Acids You Can Supplement

There 9 essential (food source) amino acids:

• histidine
• isoleucine
• leucine
• lysine
• methionine
• phenylalanine
• threonine
• tryptophan
• valine

However, because of processed foods, and some environmental factors such as pollutions, pesticides, and additives, these amino acids may not be in abundance from their original source and can be supplemented.

There are 6 conditionally essential amino acids:

• arginine
• glycine
• cysteine
• tyrosine
• proline
• glutamine

These 6 “conditionally essential” amino acids are considered to be essential only under specific circumstances such as illness or stress.

For example; although arginine is considered non-essential, when your body is under stress from a disease such as cancer, your body may not have the means to create enough arginine to meet the demands of fighting the disease. 

Why Amino Acids Are So Important to You

Your body cannot store amino acids in the same way that fat and starch are stored. The body is constantly using amino acids to build, replace, and maintain your vital functions, so it is important that you obtain them from your diet or supplementation.
If you are deficient in one or several amino acids, you may have adverse health effects and symptoms of disease can appear. 

For example; if you are deficient in tryptophan you are unable to make serotonin. Serotonin helps maintain a state of well-being, happiness, sleep and has numerous benefits to the mechanics of your digestive tract. Even just one amino acid has numerous effects to maintain optimal health. 

Dispelling a Common Judgment of Amino Acids

Amino acids are most recognized for their role in muscle development and repair; however, our bodies actually depend on them for mental health, digestive health, nervous system function, reproductive system function, as well as immune and digestive system function. As you can see, these little building blocks are actually quite busy keeping you healthy. 

Amino acids are not drugs! They do not require a prescription, but you should also have a qualified health professional guiding you in your amino acid therapy. 

How Do I Know Which Amino Acids I Should Supplement?

To help us discover which amino acids you might be deficient in, you would fill out our easy amino acid assessment form. Together we can then customize your supplements to help fill in the gaps of nutrients that could be missing. 

Can Amino Acids “Really” Help Me?

In a word…YES! At Fusion Pharmacy we have seen improvements in several disorders including mood, sleep, focus, depression, low blood sugars, improved energy, mental health, and inflammation. We have helped people improve their muscle recovery and prevent muscle breakdown. We have also helped people with depression, ADD, ADHD, insomnia, hypoglycemia, cravings, and addiction.To learn more about amino acids and these health conditions check out our Fusion Pharmacy case studies! Or, please come in and visit us for your amino acid assessment. At Fusion Specialty Pharmacy we don’t just take care of your prescriptions, we take care of your total health and that’s why #FusionIsBetterMedicine.